1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hospital bed or a hospital table.
2. Brief Description of the Background of the
Invention Including Prior Art
The beds or tables for medical examinations or surgical operations comprise a platform mounted on a support structure carried above the ground by a telescopic underframe or base. The support structure of the platform comprises a first assembly means to incline the platform laterally as well as from one side to the other, and a second assembly means to incline the platform either toward the front or toward the back. The first and the second assembly means are generally mounted onto one another according to a so-called open-chain configuration.
In order to activate the various elements, hydraulic driving elements, jacks, etc. are needed. Therefore, a hydraulic station has to be provided in proximity. Very often, the hydraulic station is mounted on the base of the bed, which limits the lowering possibilities of the platform.
It is particularly advantageous that the platform of the bed can be disposed at the vertical into an inclined or proclivity position. In order to achieve this, the platform has to be sufficiently elevated above the floor to avoid bumping against the floor during the inclination movement. Means that sufficiently elevate the platform from the floor are known. However, most of these means do not permit to sufficiently lower the platform of the bed.
This problem had priorly been solved by the use of a telescopic jack, i.e. a jack, the rod of which is made up of tubular elements slidingly mounted one in another. Even though this yielded good results, this solution has proven itself to be very costly and requires a very close and thorough maintenance.
In order to incline the platform laterally either to one side or to the other, there are often used a starting jack and a drive jack operating in synchronism and disposed on both sides of a center support. The platform of the bed is hinged to said center support.
There have been used other means for inclination of the platform. The drawback of these other means resides in the fact that they are formed by motor devices that are complex and delicate to implement and by numerous pieces for the transmission of the forces and the momvements.
Moreover, the automatic control means previously used do not permit to achieve gentle movements without any jolts or jerks.
Finally, it has become evident that the various hospital beds or tables, on account of their design, lend themselves poorly to an economical industrialization.